Summary
Developer – 3DClouds
Publisher – GameMill Entertainment
Platforms – PC (Reviewed), Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5
There’s nothing like the combination of Hot Wheels and Monster Trucks. GameMill Entertainment, 3DClouds, and Mattel have partnered up to create Hot Wheels Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem. This new game features authentic Hot Wheels Monster Trucks such as Tiger Shark, Bigfoot, Bone Shaker, and a lot more.
We’ve already seen a new Monster Truck game earlier this year with Monster Jam Showdown, but with this title, you are in the Hot Wheels atmosphere with unrealistic obstacles, stunts, and more.
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem features a limited number of modes, including Career, Boss, Stunt, and Destruction Mode. The most enjoyable mode is the Career mode, offering diverse objectives, unique destructible objects in each level, and Monster Truck-specific events to look forward to.
In Career, you’ll stumble upon different environments which adds some variety to the game, but you’ll notice that within each environment the layouts all stay the same. Yes, there are various things to destroy and slightly different objectives, but a lot of it is recycled.
Each level will have a time limit of about 3 minutes and some give slightly less time for you to get the highest combo score possible. Just like any Monster Truck game players have to constantly do jump tricks, donuts, wheelies, cause destruction, and anything else that will give you points.
The controls for Hot Wheels Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem is something you have to get used to whether using a controller or keyboard. For most of my playthrough, I used a keyboard. I experienced frustrations when the game wouldn’t let me recover from tricks, forcing me to respawn and lose my combo chain almost immediately without giving me a chance. Overall, the controls of the Monster Trucks are good, but there is room for improvement in performing certain moves.
More times than not you’ll find yourself tipping over a ton with a ton after doing front flips, back flips, donuts, drifting, and anything else you can think of. On a more positive note, I have not encountered any dropped frames when playing on my PC, and everything ran pretty smoothly. It’s not too surprising, since this isn’t an overwhelmingly demanding game for any platform.
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem comes with seven different arenas you can play in. There are also over 20 different beasts you can unlock that also come with different variants. To unlock new trucks you’ll have to complete objectives through the Career mode and progress like you normally would in any game.
Visually, Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem may not impress you too much. The environments lack detail, but the Monster Trucks themselves are the best-looking part of the game. The variety of trucks stands out with their unique designs and bright colors, which is probably the most important aspect. The Hot Wheels aspect is definitely shown greatly here as well with the Mega Loops and the dozens of ramps.
The audio is nothing spectacular either. The in-game commentator’s repetitiveness can be bothersome, but there are no issues with the truck’s audio or the destruction effects; they’re just not exceptional. The music featured during gameplay and in the menu is also uninspiring, to say the least.
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks: Stunt Mayhem is an enjoyable game, but it lacks a variety of game modes and online multiplayer, which limits players in terms of gameplay options. I appreciate its focus on freestyle and the essence of Monster Trucks, but it would greatly benefit from the addition of a racing mode or other features to justify its price.
It’s clear that this game is aimed at a younger audience, and for older fans of Monster Truck games, there are other options available.
